Sound Advice

On their fourth, self-titled LP, it's tough to say whether Liars sell out or return to form after selling out. Regardless, thank goodness they've changed, because both 2004's They Were Wrong, So We Drowned and 2006's Drum's Not Dead were interminable albums, sound collage experiments with no rhyme or reason. On Liars, the band still experiments with styles, but with styles that can be enjoyed by more people than themselves. They try punk, trip-hop, drone rock and even slow-burn dirge ballads. They sound just as much in their element here as anywhere, and maybe more so. When not sacrificing their talent on sonic fuckabout, Liars are highly talented musicians who make some grittily engaging music. Let's hope they stay linear. Matt Martin

Iron & Wine

The Shepherd's Dog

Sub Pop / Release date: Sept. 25 i>

Sounds like: Folk music for the indie crowd

Short take: Iron & Wine's breakthrough

Like a newborn puppy growing stronger with every moment, Sam Beam explodes across your speakers on Iron & Wine's latest album, The Shepherd's Dog. The album begins with the folkish "Pagan Angel and a Borrowed Car," which is delivered with all the urgency of an early '60s Dylan commentary. Throughout the album's dozen tracks you'll find Beam's quintessential whispery vocals buoyed by layer upon layer of studio magnificence. From the bluesy "White Tooth Man" and the fuzzed-up "Carousel" to the tender "Flightless Bird, American Mouth," this is the Iron & Wine album fans have been seeking ever since Beam arrived on the scene with 2002 debut The Creek Drank the Cradle. Incongruently a raucous and quiet album, The Shepherd's Dog is one of 2007's best. John Benson

Hot Hot Heat

Happiness Ltd.

Sire

Sounds like: Any overmodest rock-pop outfit

Short take: A how-to guide in selling out

Hot Hot Heat is the clearest-cut case of sellout in recent years. From a raucous first album on an independent record label to major-label, radio-pandering anonymity, the band's efforts couldn't be more obvious. Abandoning the joyful hubris that made its debut, Make Up the Breakdown,such a success, it instead goes for the laziest, broadest approach on Happiness Ltd. First single "Let Me In" sounds primed for VH1 circulation, watered-down and sappy, with a chorus so every-band that it negates itself as soon as it arrives. Most telling is "5 Times out of 100," which is a Make Up B-side remade and glazed into oblivion. The original is one of the band's best songs; the new version is a showcase in miniature of its fall from taste. Matt Martin